NORA ONYSKO / UA
[ About the artist ]
I am a 24-year-old visual artist from Uzhgorod, Ukraine. From 2017 to 2021, I studied Artistic Ceramics at the A. Erdeli Art College of the Transcarpathian Academy of Arts.
In 2022, I came to Stanica as a volunteer. I helped in the art and ceramic ateliers, organised some of my own ceramic workshops, and photographed different cultural events.
I developed an interest in photography while watching other volunteers photograph and document Stanica’s activities. Eventually, I was given the opportunity to learn from my colleagues and start photographing the events myself.
After my programme finished, I ended up staying and working at Stanica for over four years. During this time, I continued to photograph some of the events, as well as holding my own art course for younger children.
In my personal artistic work, prior to my volunteering experience, I mainly focused on painting, particularly watercolour. I had a different idea of photography until trying it out for myself, positively influenced, again, by the work of my fellow colleagues.
Soon enough, I began to experiment outside of event photography. I started going on what I called my “photo walks”, capturing things that would catch my attention while experimenting with everything my camera had to offer.
I noticed quite early on that the main subjects in my photographs were birds, as I have always enjoyed watching them. So I started to focus on them more, trying to capture them in their various ways of being, while still maintaining a link to my painting style.
[ The Birds Series ]
This selection of mostly black-and-white digital photographs was taken between 2023 and 2026. It focuses on depicting birds in their various states and exploring their coexistence with different environments.
Some of these appear familiar, while others are reduced to a mere suggestion of what they should be, both on their own and within the context of their surroundings.